Around 2,400 soldiers from the US Army 101^st Airborne Division, the “Screaming Eagles” are to deploy in Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary and Slovakia “to protect NATO's eastern flank, reassure our Allies, and deter our adversaries,” the US Mission to NATO says.

• US soldiers come to Bulgaria to bolster NATO's eastern flank
  

Meanwhile, Ukraine has been sounding the alarm of a heightened risk of a nuclear accident at the Zaporizhzhia NPP. In a joint statement, 42 countries – all members of the EU, the US, the UK, Norway, Australia, Japan, New Zealand and other countries – demanded that the Russian forces withdraw from the nuclear power plant. “We urge the Russian Federation to immediately withdraw its military forces and all other unauthorised personnel from the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, its immediate surroundings, and all of Ukraine so that the operator and the Ukrainian authorities can resume their sovereign responsibilities within Ukraine’s internationally recognized borders and the legitimate operating staff can conduct their duties without outside interference, threat, or unacceptably harsh working conditions. This will also enable the IAEA to carry out its verification pursuant to Ukraine’s safeguards obligations under safe and secure conditions and in a timely manner,” the statement reads. According to Maria Zakharova, spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry, as reported by the Russian TASS news agency, the West is doing everything it can so as not to allow an IAEA mission to reach the ZaporizhzhiaNuclear Power Plant, while Moscow is sparing no effort to organize such a visit.  

According to data of the Ukrainian General Staff, the Ukrainian army has successfully repulsed Russian army advances in five directions, while the Russian army is continuing to shell settlements with tanks and artillery.

The first UN-chartered ship has left the Ukrainian port of Pivdennyi loaded with 23,000 tonnes of wheat and bound for Ethiopia. After an agreement was reached, with the mediation of the UN and Turkey, a total of 16 ships have so far left Ukraine, among them the Bulgarian ship Rojen.

• "Rojen" ship has successfully transported Ukrainian grain to Ravenna